Naruto-contested-Uzumaki was happy. He wasn't happy because he had seemingly fooled the smartest genin their age. Not because he thought he had fooled an elite Jonin. He wasn't happy because he had successfully pranked the foolish villagers with the help of his minions, without even lifting a finger himself.
Naruto wasn't happy because he wasn't even summoned by the Hokage, seeing as there were no witnesses who could state that he was there. He wasn't happy because for once he hadn't been chased by enraged Chunins threatening to gut him.
Neither was he happy because he had finally mastered the Academy Three Jutsu and with a week to go in the deadline the Hokage had given him, and with a week till his team returned.
No, he was happy because of the scroll he was holding in his hands. He was too tired the night before to properly pay it the attention it merited and so, he had put it off till he was fresh. Apparently, Guy had left with his team, and so Naruto was left to train alone. But he didn't mind. There was enough for him to do, with the exercises that he had seen Guy and Lee perform.
Granted, some of them were still way out of his ability to perform yet – even if were insane enough to attempt them. Like, running across the village on standing on their hands. Just the thought of doing something that crazy sent shivers down his spine.
But he had trained nonetheless, switching up the order, sets and weights he performed the new exercises at. Like Guy said, he needed to be constantly putting new strain on his body, or it will get used to it and he will plateau. Naruto had taken it to heart, and whenever it seemed like his muscles were maybe getting used to the exercises, he switched them up.
Unlike the single lined notes every year before, this one included a letter along with his gift. Naruto read it for perhaps the fifth time, just to make sure it was real and someone wasn't playing a joke on him. But it was still there! It wasn't a genjutsu. It hadn't vanished when he had tried to dispel it.
'Dear Naru-chan
I don't know how I should even begin writing this to you. First of all, happy thirteenth birthday. It must be a momentous occasion for you. After all, it's not everyday a boy turns into a teenager. You're practically a man now. Soon, you will be keeping away your own share of fan girls with a stick, I have no doubt.
I just wish I was there to share it with you, my love. These three years I have been sending you the scrolls is what money I think would have been yours as pocket money. I don't think it'll fit that cute little froggy wallet of yours though. I am excessively sorry for having missed your previous birthdays. And for…
Rest assured we will meet soon. If fate wills it to be so, my love. Into this year's scroll, I have sealed exercises that I thought would benefit you. Additionally, as a special gift, for a special birthday, I have also included what once belonged to my beloved uncle. I hope you like it and you will use it well.
Even though I wish you had not chosen such a dangerous path, fraught with terrors and loss of life, I know you will be an awesome ninja one day. And it will be my pleasure to aid you in that in any small way, even if the road to self-satisfaction is better with self-learning.
But as you grow older, let me depart some words of wisdom. Naruto, be safe. Be strong. But most of all, be kind. Now that you are a proper ninja, know this Naruto: true courage is about knowing not when to take a life, but when to spare one.
Now I think that's enough of me giving you a lecture. I am sure you have many things to do that require your attention.
So, I'll say goodbye. For now.
Happy Birthday Naru-chan'
Naruto was aware of the hot tears that ran down his face as he took in the letter. There was someone out there who cared. Someone who actually gave him something for his birthday. Maybe… maybe they were even in this village?
But then if they were in Konoha, why wouldn't they give it to him themselves? Were they scared what associating with him would mean for their reputation? That was probably it, Naruto cursed his fate for the millionth time. More than that, he cursed the Yondaime for placing this unfair burden on him.
For the last three years, he had been receiving money in scrolls from this mysterious benefactor, which he had been saving in a very carefully hidden spot in his ceiling, in case his apartment was broken into. It had happened twice or thrice when he had moved into this hovel.
Everybody always looks under the floor but never in the ceiling. Which is why the hiding place was so effective. But why would they call him Naru-chan. The only ones he had heard call their children that were a few mothers.
'Maybe she's my mother', Naruto thought in a moment of utter unrealism but snorted and scoffed at the very next second.
That was a stupider thought than thinking he could be Hokage just as he was now. If his mother was alive, then she wouldn't have allowed that blonde bastard to do this to him.
Moreover, if his mother was alive, she wouldn't have left him, unless of course, she thought of him as the Kyubi reincarnate like the villagers did.
Now that he thought about what the old man answered him every time he had asked about his parents, it was always the same.
But only now could see how contradictory his answers had been. The Sandaime claimed he had no idea who his parents were. But also said that they died heroes of Konoha. There were then two possibilities.
One, that his parents weren't really from Konoha or heroes and he was just some random orphan the bastard had picked up for the sealing.
Two, if the second was true, then that meant that the first was false. The Sandaime must have known his parents, at least by name. Otherwise how could he claim them to be heroes.
No, he was inclined to believe that at least in this, the old man hadn't lied to him, or at least he hoped he hadn't deceived him in this. Otherwise, he didn't know what he would do. He could always leave the village of course.
But he was under no delusion to think they would just let him go without hunting him down. He was the holder of the Kyubi no Yoko. The villagers and the shinobi might hate him but they will not let him go. And as he was now, he had no hope of outlasting the teams of hunters that would surely be sent after him.
Naruto contemplated what it all meant as he sipped a glass of milk. The scrolls, the money, the birthday letter he had gotten today. Not to mention the notes on chakra control he had gotten previously. None of it made sense to him. Who would give him so much money? And why after he had turned nine and not before?
In each of the previous scrolls, he had a total of two hundred thousand ryo. So, in total, now he had eight hundred thousand ryo from his four birthdays, that he didn't know what to do with. Hell, he hadn't even been paid this much for the Wave Mission.
Naruto had never cared much for something as trivial as money. Sure, he wished he had more money to spend on clothes and food, but that was about it. He cared much more for people who were nice to him. So, he had saved it all for a rainy day.
Suddenly there was a loud knock on the door, startling him and causing him to spill milk all over his orange jacket.
'Shit', he cursed mentally, looking around for any place to hide his gift quickly. When he found no other place that could do, in a rare combination of unpredictability and sense, he shoved the scroll in the one place no one had any business looking. His pants.
'Coming!' he called to the door. Maybe it was his team and they had returned earlier than expected. It would make sense. It could only be his luck that was so bad. Truthfully, he didn't think anybody in the elemental nations could have any worse luck than he did. It was like he was cursed from birth or something.
Unbeknownst to him in a gambling house in Tea Country, a blonde woman wearing a green haori, cursed as she lost another bet and consequently another large sum of money.
Naruto straightened out his trousers, making sure nothing was sticking out and walked over the door, trying to look as casual as possible. Opening the door, he saw…. no one.
'Hello?' the whiskered teen stuck his face out and looked left and right for any sign of life. There was none.
Maybe it was a prank.
Only then did he notice a small parcelled box leaning against the outer wall. Naruto's eyes widened as he realised what it was. Of course, he recognised it. When he was younger, he would always wait for this one package on his birthday.
After he had been kicked out of the orphanage, this had been the best part of his year. Ever since then, the day after his birthday, he would find this. Naruto gingerly picked up the little box, tied with a blue ribbon and took it inside.
But the last two years he hadn't gotten one and likely presumed that whoever it was, finally realised how everyone disliked him and decided to do the same. He truly wasn't expecting it this year. The sight of the familiar box brought a sly smile to his face as he shut the door.
Before he had started receiving the mysterious annual scroll on, this mysterious person was the only one to ever give him birthday presents. He neatly untied the bow, and equally carefully unwrapped the gift wrap, being presented with an elegant wooden black box, with a note on top of it.
'To Naruto-kun
Happy Birthday
Love….'
Naruto wasn't surprised by it at all. It was always the same. But he just couldn't understand why they would send one this year and not the previous two years. Naruto gasped as opened the lid, revealing a Konoha head band.
More precisely, it was his headband. Naruto could recognise it anywhere, from the barely discernible kanji for his name he had carved into it in the top right. It was the head band which Iruka-sensei had given him when he defeated Mizuki-teme.
The head band was one of his very few precious possessions. As such, he had been crushed when he had lost it in Wave, thinking it had possibly fallen over the bridge into the raging river.
He had gone back to look for it, but was unsuccessful. Now it sat here on a bed of black velvet, all polished and shiny and new again. A lot of the wear and tear had smoothened out, and it looked a lot better than it used to.
The torn blue cloth had been replaced by a felt, dark red, which if he was being honest looked hell of a lot better. As he picked it up, a note fell from behind the metal.
'10 free bowls of Ramen at Ichiraku's. Valid for one year.'
Naruto chuckled at the familiar coupon, smiling fondly. Granted, he was trying to cut down on his ramen consumption. But he was still very thankful to whoever this person was. He had had a sneaky suspicion it was Ayame nee-chan. After all, who else would give him ramen coupons. But that was out of the window now.
How could Ayame have his head band. Therefore, it must be someone else. Perhaps Kakashi…. Naah. That's even more impossible.
If ever the shopkeepers tried being more than usual asses and charged him more for groceries etc. It wasn't unusual for them to do so. And so, it was equally usual for Naruto to run out of money for sufficient food before he got his monthly stipend from the Hokage. When Naruto was around five or six, he depended greatly on these coupons for food as a backup.
Smiling, Naruto carefully slipped the coupon into his froggy wallet and tied his headband, thinking what he would do now that it was clear no Jonin would answer his mission request for a tutor. He had three options.
One, go to the old man and complain about it. That likely would do nothing. Next, try and find Danzo. That was even more unlikely seeing as he had seen no hide nor hair of the man in weeks. Third, ask the other Jonin he knew in the village. They might agree if he promises to pay them handsomely.
Naruto pushed away the thoughts of frustration that threatened to ruin his good at the thought of such unfair treatment at the hands of his own sensei, because of whom he was in this position in the first place.
Distracted as he was by his warring emotions, he failed to sense to the figure on the rooftop opposite his apartment, their lavender-whitish eyes being the only feature an onlooker might be able to distinguish.
From a hundred meters away, they watched the hapless teenager opening his present. And while their vision was completely in negative, they had a perfect view of miniscule incline of the corners of his lips, as he looked on to the coupon.
'Happy Birthday, Naruto-kun', with that whisper, the figure disappeared, as if they were just a product of genjutsu.
Naruto meanwhile, channelled chakra into the storage seal onto his birthday scroll, waiting with baited breath for something to emerge. In a puff of smoke that usually accompanied unsealing anything, out popped a long slender black box.
Gingerly, he set the box down and opened the lid and slid it backwards, gasping at the contents.
Inside the box, lay a sword. The saya was plain, unadorned and pitch black, slightly longer than half of Naruto's height. The sword itself was quite heavy, signifying that it was made for a man. Metal singed like a reaper getting ready to end lives, as Naruto pulled out the sword from its scabbard.
Unlike most katanas or wakizashi, the blade wasn't curved. Instead it was a straight blade, doubled edged which ended in a single point. The lack of the blade's curve however, was made up by the most peculiar handle he had ever seen on a katana.
Unlike most handles which were somewhat rectangular, made of wood and only slightly curved, the hilt was metallic, circular in shape, and significantly curved without a tsuba.
He had never thought that he would use a sword or even their smaller versions, but he had seen them in Higurashi's weapon shop where he buys most of his kunai and shuriken. This however, was simultaneously the most peculiar and the most beautiful weapon he had ever seen in his life.
In short, the black hilt curved upwards for a length of maybe half his forearm, then straightened towards the end, and tapered down into the straight, doubled edged, black blade which was as long as half his height and ended in a single point.
He might not know anything about swords, but even as uneducated as he was in the art of kenjutsu, he could tell that this sword was for thrusting more than it was for slashing.
Excitement built up in his chest as he gazed upon his first ever specialised ninja weapon. If he actually learned to fight with this unorthodox sword, he would no longer be a just as average run of the mill shinobi using kunai and shuriken or katanas.
Unbidden, and as if summoned by his excitement, the memory of Zabuza's insanely long and heavy broad sword spinning through the air and embedding into a tree trunk, flashed in his head.
Naruto remembered Zabuza standing before the petrified Team 7, his zanbato on his shoulders like it weighed nothing, as if it was yesterday.
Grinning at the prospect, he recalled the words the shinobi had said, 'When you've hovered between life and death so many times that it doesn't faze you, then you may be called a ninja.'
He might not have a zanbato like the Demon of the Mist, but he could and would forge a path for himself. He was never one to follow in others' footsteps after all. And he wasn't going to start now. Just because he respected the man as a shinobi, didn't mean he had to wield the same sword, and be the same murdering psychopath, just to honour the lessons Zabuza had inadvertently taught him.
'You know what she is after', the cycloptic retired ninja said to his long-time rival who sat smoking his damn pipe behind the Hokage's desk.
'Yes, but we cannot be sure', Hiruzen answered Danzo in the same tone as he always did his interferences.
While outwardly he remained as impassive and emotionless as he always does, inwardly he seethed at the Hokage's naivety. At times, it was harder to see who was more idealistic. Hiruzen or Naruto Uzumaki.
'She wants our jinchurrikki', Danzo stated bluntly, the topic they had been dancing around for more than half an hour.
'Of course, she does', the Professor answered, looking at his rival as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 'But we aren't going to let her. As you know, the Kiri company is under constant surveillance.'
Indeed, who wouldn't be tempted when faced with a young, naïve Jinchurrikki, and one who housed the greatest of the nine-tailed beasts. Not that Konoha would attempt such a thing, but he was well aware that their village was an oddity among the Great Five.
Well, Konoha under his command wouldn't. Danzo was another matter entirely. But if it was left up to him, the world would surely burn. It seemed that his rival hadn't learned from their sensei's teammate.
'And what's to stop Uzumaki from wanting to go with her?' Danzo asked pointedly, challenging his ex-teammate to deny what was obvious to them all. That Naruto Uzumaki was a flight risk.
However instead of Hiruzen actually recognising that what Danzo was saying actually had merit, he continued with his usual naïve assumptions.
'Nonsense. Naruto may be somewhat disillusioned right now, especially after Kakashi insisting he focus on the basic techniques instead of teaching him ninjutsu, but he is never one to give up. His dream is to become the greatest of the Hokage or have you forgotten it.'
Danzo grit his teeth and felt like knocking some sense into his rival. Old age was clearly affecting him more out of the two. Perhaps he was even going senile. 'The woman clearly capitalising on what any blind person could see. The boy is not being taught properly and wants guidance. She will offer him that guidance and the results could be catastrophic.'
This time however, the Sandaime didn't disagree with his advisor. He knew Danzo was right, at least on some aspects. Which is why he had given Naruto the incentive of teaching him a jutsu. But if the Kiri Jonin offers it to be him, the boy might as well be tempted. Like any thirteen-year-old would.
When he didn't answer for a while, Danzo spoke up again, 'They must not be allowed to interact with the boy.'
Hiruzen however, hadn't guided Konoha through two wars successfully without being at least a little shrewd. Granted, Danzo far outranked him in such a quality, but he was no slouch either. He could see what Danzo was planning.
If he prohibited Mei Terumi and Naruto's interaction, when it was that the woman had helped him, judging by the reports he had received, then Naruto would get even ore frustrated. His rival would then swoop in and offer Naruto training. Of course, he couldn't actually do anything without his permission but given Naruto's already shaky bonds within the village, doing so would at least put pressure on him to give Naruto into his custody.
And that was something was the Hokage was not going to allow. Naruto was still possessed a very impressionable young mind. And even if he had failed the boy in other aspects, he would not allow him to become one of the emotionless tools that Danzo's methods make.
So, he countered with his own idea, 'Or we can use their interaction to gain some much-needed intel.'
Danzo prided himself on thinking five steps ahead of any opponent. Be it an enemy or a political rival such as the one sitting opposite him. As such he wasn't surprised when the man proposed some counterintelligence.
Indeed, it was a viable option. There was no doubt that the Kiri Jonin was trying to undermine Konoha's authority in Uzumaki's eyes and even sway him to their side under the guise of wanting an alliance.
But considering the boy's naïve notion of fairness and honesty, no matter how much he had improved in the time since Wave, Uzumaki would need to be given an incentive.
Hiruzen could almost see the gears turning in Danzo's head and knew they had both come to the same conclusion as he spotted the familiar folder on his desk. That had been a topic of much contention in the council meeting a few days ago.
Indeed, some of the council members thought it was almost an insult that Naruto went as far as asking for a tutor. It was as if he had informed them, he would be taking their kidneys. Even so, it was also obvious to both wizened war veterans that regardless of whether Mei succeeded in undermining Konoha in Naruto's mind, she couldn't be allowed to offer him training.
Such a thing could possibly sow seeds in the young boy's mind and that needed to avoided at all costs.
'Have you decided who to assign that mission?' Danzo asked, pointing to the tutoring mission Uzumaki had filed.
The Sandaime sighed, taking a puff from his beloved pipe, 'Not yet. I'm not convinced its entirely necessary at this point. Kakashi will soon return from Wave in a few days.'
Danzo wasn't convinced that it was a good idea, but this played in his favour. If Hiruzen downplayed the significance of not giving the boy a tutor, then he could put his own plans into actions. The boy's mentality was coming along nicely.
Now, it remained to be seen how he takes being informed of his burden. He had already arranged for it to happen, inconspicuously of course and would be monitoring his reaction. That would greatly influence on how the boy was to be used going forward. Even though it had turned out in Danzo's favour, Hatake has shown himself to be entirely useless.
Hence, the boy will need to be given an incentive. Danzo planned to make sure that he was to be the one to do it.
An hour later, after gorging himself on a large breakfast, Naruto had checked up on the status of his filed mission. Like he suspected, while many people had looked at it, as shown by the logs, none of them however accepted the mission.
While a few weeks ago, he might have been content to let it go and move with life, smiling and grinning as if it didn't faze him, Naruto made his way to the Hokage's office. It was around the time the old man was usually free for a break and reading that smut book so it should be fine.
'Ah, Naruto-kun', the old man greeted him cordially and if he noted that the boy was a little more guarded than usual, he didn't say anything.
Naruto nodded, 'Yo Jiji', waving to the old man behind the desk, who had usual just put the orange book back in his drawer.
'It's good to see you, Naruto…', the Hokage replied but stopped short. He wasn't the only one in the room to notice the obvious difference. Danzo, hidden in the shadows couldn't believe what his lone eye was seeing either.
No there was no way! Had the Kyubi taken over and it was just trying to trick them?
No, that wasn't it. Hiruzen mentally shook off that ridiculous thought. As one of the ones who had fought the demon, he remembered its chakra as clearly as he did his own. There were so signs of the monster having taken over the boy's body, now that he concentrated on the feel of the boy's chakra.
Danzo had reached a similar conclusion. While he hadn't fought the Kyubi himself, no one could forget the absolute rage, hatred and bloodlust. The absolute malice that was its very being. The potency of its killing intent that even the most battle-hardened shinobi couldn't manage. There was none of that present in the boy before them.
Naruto noted the old man's widened eyes, 'What's up, old man. Is something wrong?'
The Sandaime smiled, 'No. No of course not, Naruto.' The Hokage knew that even the boy was still the innocent young boy he was, outright lying to him would do no good. Besides, he still had to figure out what the source of this change in Naruto's appearance was? It could just be Naruto's decision to prank him.
'I was just surprised by the feel of your chakra. It seems much more controlled now', he added, knowing it was the truth, or at least part of the truth. Their sensei had taught them the art of misdirection. That half-truths were always better than outright lies.
'Hehe, well I have been working on my chakra control', Naruto smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head but then he remembered why he came here. 'Anyway Jiji, I have come to talk to you about something important!'
The Hokage raised an eyebrow, 'Oh? And what is this important topic, Naruto-kun?' Perhaps, it was this change?
But there was no reason in shocking Naruto yet. He would just assign someone to watch him. Indeed, with the Kiri Jonin's unusual amount of interest in Naruto, it was looking more and more necessary to keep him under surveillance.
In any case, he probably had an idea what Naruto wanted to talk about.
'It's the mission I filed. No one's responded to it yet and its been five days', Naruto sat down on the chair opposite the old man and crossed his arms, demanding an explanation.
Hiruzen blinked once or twice, before he settled for a business tone, hardly able to picture this somewhat composed Naruto as the boy who used to barge into his office to play. The boy who sometimes had taken to wearing the Hokage hat, even if it was absurdly large on his head.
The boy sitting opposite him, while still had the whining habit of his older self, also seemed much older than he really was. That thought pained him more than he cared to admit.
'Ah yes, yes. The mission', Hiruzen made a show of fishing out Naruto's file from amongst the many he had on the table. He had hidden it as soon as his secretary had announced Naruto was here to see him.
Naruto's eyes narrowed for a second at seeing that file on the old man's desk. What was it doing there? Weren't they picked up at the Mission's Office? Or was he missing something else?
'Let's see here', the Hokage made a show perusing it again, despite knowing every word that was on there. 'Says here, you need a request a tutor for training in taijutsu, ninjutsu and shurikenjutsu?'
Naruto nodded at the summary. That was the gist of it, though now he could think of a couple of more things he wanted to add on there and wondered if he would be allowed to amend it.
Hiruzen sighed, not having known that his problems with Kakashi were this bad. 'Naruto, this isn't a tutor', he pointed to the folder. 'Nobody has answered it because what you are asking for in his mission request is not a tutor but a sensei. That's completely different. And you already have a sensei.'
Naruto pursed his lips. Of course, he knew what he was asking. But he had been hoping it wouldn't be an issue. Now he saw what a childish wish that was. 'Yes, but Kakashi-sensei doesn't teach me anything. I've already told you this, Jiji!'
The Sandaime shook his head, 'Okay… but you're going to have to wait a little while longer. I will talk to Kakashi when he gets back and…', he raised his hand when it looked like Naruto was going to interrupt. 'Besides Naruto-kun. This mission needs to be ranked properly first by a vote of the council and a proper tutor will be assigned.'
Naruto's eyes lit up at his reply. It meant that it wasn't just being overlooked because who he was but they were actually going to be give it some thought. Then what Hinata had told him about mission rankings came back in his head.
If a mission wasn't properly ranked, or the client hasn't specified the rank he need, only then the council decides on it. That means he could hurry up the process by deciding in then and there.
'No need for that old man', Naruto said, noting the slight surprise in the Hokage's face before it vanished. Did he think Naruto did not want a tutor anymore? No! He had to disabuse the senile old man of that notion quickly.
'What I mean is, the council doesn't need to rank it. I'm willing to pay for an A-rank mission for it. Or even two!', Naruto quickly added.
There was a slight shock of surprise and a flare of chakra that Naruto sensed go around in the room upon his proclamation. Maybe it was the ANBU hidden in here. But why would they be surprised. This was his training they were talking about. Surely, he couldn't be stingy.
Hiruzen was mildly surprised that the boy knew how to shorten the procedure. Who had told him this? His first thought naturally went to the rival who was hidden in his office? But when would he have the chance?
Come to think of it, how had Naruto even known that he could hire tutors. It wasn't something that they teach at the academy and for good reason. It seemed that Hiruzen would have to keep a closer eye on his ex-teammate.
But right now, he needed information before he decided something, knowing that Kakashi wouldn't like it when he came back.
'Okay', the Hokage puffed out some smoke from his pipe and picked up a pen, noting the carefully guarded glee in Naruto's eyes. 'How much would you pay for this mission? And for how long?'
Naruto's eyes narrowed for a while as he mentally calculated how much he had saved in total and if he would need to pay for each aspect of ninja arts separately.
'Well, that depends Naruto. Most clients who pay for high ranked missions specify what kind of ninja they want for it.'
Naruto pondered on it and decided that one tutor for all of them would be sufficient for now. As well as cost effective. Even though he had savings, he wasn't swimming in money after all. 'What do you think, Jiji?'
'Hmmm…', the Hokage thought about it a little. There was no harm in humouring the boy until Kakashi returned. Naruto would most probably back out of it when he told him the price of such a mission. 'I suggest a Jonin or Special Jonin. As for the time span, that would have to be agreed between you and the tutor, depending on the training regimen they design for you.'
They spent a few more minutes hashing out the details and refining his mission request until Hiruzen explained what he required of Naruto, knowing that at least in this he wouldn't face opposition from the other elders.
It was another half an hour later that a more subdued and thoughtful Naruto had left the Hokage's office. His first instinct was to go to the library, to search for any clues as to who the sender of his mysterious scroll could be. But his training was more important than a might be-possible-mother who had abandoned him.
And no, he was most certainly not scared to know who she was. Nor was he scared to know that he might actually hate the woman if it turned out to be true.
BuNishi-Kun: Mate, it's my fucking story. I'll do whatever the fuck I want with it. If I want to write about one of characters that I've mentioned in the tags, then I'll bloody well do it. If you want to read about a semi god-like Naruto barely three months after his academy graduation, then go read something else. I want to develop my characters in a way other than spamming clones, memorising books and being able to execute elemental jutsus out of his arse. If you can't handle that, then bugger off.